Werewolf Repellant

"Klein, are you sure about this?" Calix asked, holding his elbow. "It could be dangerous. No, it is dangerous. It's possible he's waiting for you at school."

He's aware of that. In fact, he was expecting Khalil to be at school, but he's not changing his mind.

"I can't miss school just because of this," Klein said. "We have an exam coming up."

"Is that more important than your safety?"

"What do you want me to do? Set aside my life plans and hide away in fear?" Klein shook away Calix's hold on him. "Nothing will be solved if I do that. My future is at stake here. I need to face this problem head on."

Calix clenched his jaw, then sighed. "Alright. If that's what you want. But I'll come with you."

Klein would have protested, but having Calix around was beneficial to his plans. At least, for now. He nodded and smiled. "You don't have to, but thanks. I'd feel more at ease if you're nearby. Though, I don't think you can come inside since you're not a student."

"It's okay. I'll find a way."

"How?"

"We'll talk about that later. Let's have some breakfast first." Calix grinned as he raised the plastic bag again. "I bought pandesal and champorado. You like that, right?"

Klein's brows furrowed. "How do you—?"

"Just a lucky guess! I-I'll go prepare this now." Calix chuckled uneasily, rubbing his nape as he went to the kitchen. He rummaged through a plastic drawer. "Bowls. Bowls. Where are the bowls? Oh, here it is."

Klein sat on the monobloc chair and watched Calix pour chocolate rice porridge into two bowls. He rarely had it nowadays since his mom never prepared rice porridges, but back when he was still visiting his grandparents, it was served almost every morning.

Calix put one bowl in front of Klein. "Do you want extra milk?"

"Ah... no, it's fine. Thanks."

"Okay." Calix sat in front of him and poured condensed milk in his own bowl. He looked at Klein again, his lips curling into another smile. "Dig in. I'll drop you off to your school."

Klein dropped his gaze to the sweet rice porridge to avoid the dazzling smile that tickled his stomach. He grabbed the spoon and stuck a spoonful of the glutinous rice in his mouth, letting the cocoa flavor swirl in his tongue. It's not as sweet as he was used to.

"Milk?" Calix offered, still smiling. Why was he always smiling at him like that? It's annoying.

Klein grabbed the can of condensed milk and added it to the rice porridge until he's satisfied.

After having their breakfast, they promptly got ready for school. Calix had put on a simple black long-sleeved shirt over a pair of faded jeans with fashionable rips on the knee part, while Klein still had the same gradient gray shirt. Although it was already cleaned, Klein worried people might notice he was still wearing the clothes as yesterday.

Then there was the sticky feeling of the coconut oil in his skin. Klein agreed to its application so Khalil wouldn't trail them, but now that he had decided to meet with him, it was pretty much useless. Should he take a bath again?

"What's wrong?" Calix asked as he put on his cap in reverse.

"Nothing. Just wondering if the coconut oil has werewolf repellant properties."

Calix chuckled, which earned him a glare from Klein.

"I'm serious. Because if it's not, I'm taking a bath again. It's uncomfortable."

Still laughing, Calix assured in an unconvincing voice, "Yes, it's werewolf repellant. Should we go now or let's change plan?"

"I'm getting rid of it."

"Hey! Hey, don't!"

"It's uncomfortable, okay?" Klein lifted his shirt, but Calix still tried to stop him.

They wrestled each other until the shirt slipped off of his head that they both stopped. With his back pressed against hard chest, and with Calix's arms around his waist, Klein realized it wasn't a brilliant idea to oppose him.

"Is a... werewolf repellant really what you want?" Calix breathed to his exposed shoulder. "If that's what you want, then... okay. You can wash it off. I'll just give you something else. Something that can irritate their nose they'd rather stay away from you."

Klein, having his energy zapped to pull away, just nodded. "T-That will work. Thanks."

Slowly, Calix unlatched his hold around him. He stepped away and gestured to the bathroom. "Go on. We still have time. I'll wait for you outside."

With another nod, Klein rushed to the bathroom and locked himself inside. Well, he couldn't lock it, but it helped hide him away from Calix.

Klein sighed, his skin still flustered. "Calm down, self. He's still a stranger."

———

Calix stared at the closed bedroom, then shook his head vigorously. He grabbed Klein's shirt thrown on the bed and looked around. "Perfume. I need a strong perfume."

A werewolf's heightened sense of smell decreased when they're in human form, but it never shut off, so it's still easy to irritate them. The more concentrated a perfume, the better. It could trigger headache to regular people. What more to a werewolf?

Calix rummaged through his drawer for perfume Klein could use, but he found something better. With an ear-splitting grin, he gripped it in his palm and grabbed his favorite perfume.

———

Klein stepped out of the bathroom, feeling refreshed. Honestly, the oil made him feel like he just stood in the sun all day and greased out too much sweat. He may not mind it if they were in a fully air-conditioned room, but Calix only had an electric fan next to his bed.

Speaking of Calix, the silver-haired guy was nowhere to be found, but his gradient gray shirt was laid on the bed beside his cross-body bag.

Hurriedly, Klein put on his shirt, grabbed his bag, and stepped out of the apartment after locking the door. His shirt already smelled like cedarwood, so it must have been sprayed with perfume.

It's the same one that caught his attention on the train. Klein remembered Khalil complaining about the smell. Even without explanation from Calix, he could see the logic behind it. Maybe Calix wore it to catch a werewolf in the crowd.

Stepping out into the unfamiliar neighborhood, Klein found Calix perched on his motorcycle while caught in a casual conversation with a girl in her late twenties and two other... barbies.

Calix perked up upon seeing him and smiled. "Klein! You ready to go?"

Intrigued eyes followed him as he approached Calix. Klein didn't bother greeting them. He just accepted the half helmet from Calix and put it on. "Will we reach my school in time?"

"Don't worry. I'll take care of it," Calix assured, reaching a hand to adjusting the chin strap of Klein's helmet—an action that turned intrigue into suspicion. "Oh! By the way, I have something for you."

Klein watched Calix fished something out of his pocket and heard gasps of disbelief as he pulled out a necklace. His brows furrowed upon receiving it. "What's this for?"

Calix lifted the stainless rounded pendant. "It has the perfume I'm using. You want it, right?"

"Oh. Okay."

"Come here. Let me put it for you."

"There's no need—"

But Calix already grabbed the chain necklace and put it around his neck. Their closeness further intensified the stares pricking his skin. Klein found Calix's actions suspicious, but making a fuss would only make it worse.

"There. Just refill it again once you've used it. Any strong perfume would do." Calix flashed another grin that it almost blinded him. "So, let's get going?"

"Yeah. Let's go." Klein went behind the motorcycle and swung his leg into the passenger seat. He put a considerable distance. If he sat too close, someone might hurl him into the pavement.

Calix started the engine and waved goodbye to his friends. Assuming they were his friends. The motorcycle drove forward, but Calix braked suddenly, forcing Klein to wrap his arms around Calix's waist.

"Hold on tight," Calix said, an amused tone in his voice. "I'm gonna drive real fast."

Klein tightened his hold because the need to leave became a necessity. If he will not be murdered by a werewolf, he will be shredded in the hands of these people, who had been sending him death glares.